Software Used:

ArtRage 3.0.7 Studio Pro
Paintshop pro 8
FilterForge 5
Daz Studio 3

Time taken: 2 days

I wanted to create an image that captured the Magic and beauty of the night before Christmas. I didn't want to adhere to traditional themes and symbolism so I decided on an Ice dragon which is my favorite mythical beast.  

I first painted the background in ArtRage using the watercolour brush and then used an old Daz 3d render of the Millennium dragon as a guide to overpaint.
I added the ice globe to sit within its tail and snow brushes for the overlaying snow. It was then postworked in Filterforge for a few adjustments and to better integrate the dragon and globe with the painting.

Have a wonderful holiday.

Credits:

Davor Planinec - dp - Lots of orbs
ron deviney - deviney - Rons Magical Snow